Fernandez posted photos on Facebook, and within just a few hours friends have shared them around the world. Some suspect it's algae, while others wonder if it's caused by iron. There are all sorts of theories.

"I just don't want people showing up, thinking this is some Biblical phenomenon or something like that," Fernandez says.

We tried to get in touch with an expert to find out what may be to blame for the red water, but had no luck. - KWCH.

February 19, 2014 - UNITED STATES - The
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is contracted to purchase
704,390,250 rounds of ammunition over the next four years, which is
equal to a total of about 2,500 rounds per DHS agent, according to a
January 2014 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report entitled Ammunition Purchases Have Declined Since 2009.

“If DHS were to purchase all 704 million rounds over the next four
years, and if they were used by 70,000 DHS agents and officers, it would
be roughly 2,500 rounds per agent per year,” David Maurer, author of
the GAO report, told CNSNews.com.

“That would be higher than what we saw in past years at DHS and
higher than the average annual number of rounds per agent or officer at
the Department of Justice (DOJ)," he said.

“The 704,390,250 number of rounds is like a ceiling or credit limit
which DHS wouldn’t have to fully execute,” said Maurer. “It’s there to
use over the next four years until fiscal year 2018, if DHS needed to
purchase those rounds.”

In Appendix III of the GAO report, “Department of Homeland Security
Ammunition Contracts, as of October 1, 2013,” it states that “the 29
existing DHS ammunition contracts extend over the next 4 fiscal years
and have a remaining contract limit of approximately 704 million rounds
(for various ammunition types) if every option for purchasing
ammunition were exercised into fiscal year 2018.”

The appendix puts the contract ceiling cost at $285,356,645 for the 704,390,250 rounds of ammo.
As of October 2013, the DHS had a total amount of 159 million ammunition rounds on hand in inventory (see p. 22 in report), which when divided by the estimated number of DHS officers of 70,000, comes to about 2,271 rounds per agent.

To put these numbers in perspective, the report provides data on how many rounds were actually bought and how many rounds would typically be needed during training.

“We analyzed DHS data on ammunition purchases and the size of the firearm-carrying workforce for fiscal years 2008 through 2013 and found the average number of rounds of ammunition purchased per year per firearm-carrying agent or officer by component for this time period ranged between approximately 1,000 and 2,000 rounds,” said the report.

“This variation exists because each component independently decides, based on its operational needs, how much ammunition to allocate to its firearm-carrying personnel for training and qualification each year,” said the report. “For example, FPS provides each officer 250 rounds per quarter per handgun for firearm qualification, while ICE provides 100 rounds per quarter per handgun for firearm qualification.”

In fiscal year 2013, 900 rounds were bought per agent or officer at DHS and 1,200 rounds were bought per agent or officer at DOJ.

“According
to CBP [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] data, new Border Patrol
agents each use approximately 3,300 rounds during training and
qualification, compared with experienced officers who might use about
600 rounds," reads the report. "DHS components provided data on the
amount of ammunition typically used by a new law enforcement hire,
which ranged from 2,000 to 5,000 rounds."

“At both DHS and DOJ, federal law enforcement agents and officers are
authorized to carry firearms, and are required to train in their use
and pass certain firearms qualification standards,” reads the report.
“Firearms proficiency is a key component of an officer’s ability to
successfully fulfill the component’s mission and protect life and public
safety."

The report continues, "To help ensure the firearms proficiency of
their firearm-carrying workforce, these agencies purchase a variety of
types of ammunition for training, qualifications, and operational
purposes.” - CNS News.

February 19, 2014 - PORTLAND, UNITED STATES - Crews rescued a woman and a dog trapped in a deep sinkhole in Southeast Portland on Tuesday night.

Fire fighters said the woman fell into a sinkhole about three and a half feet wide and 20 feet deep at 2723 SE 38th Avenue.

At approximately 7:15 p.m. a man taking a walk heard a woman
screaming for help. He followed her cries and discovered her underground
in a backyard, according to crews.

The woman, about 30 years old, had been looking for her dog in her backyard when she fell in.

A heavy rescue unit arrived and pulled the woman and her dog, a poodle mix, from the hole.

The woman (and the dog) were examined by paramedics and found to be healthy, crews said.

WATCH: Sinkhole swallows woman & dog in SE Portland.

“They (firefighters) were actually able to lower a ladder down and
get her out,” said Rich Chatman of Portland Fire & Rescue. “Prior
to that, they were able to lower a rope down to the dog and brought up
the dog. It sounds like dog went in first. “

A neighbor stated that he and the woman had recently been required to do some work on their sewage line.
Fire fighters secured the hole until the homeowners can decide how to take care of it. - KGW.

February 19, 2014 - TECHNOLOGY - The first prototypes of a high-tech suit of armor to give soldiers
superhuman abilities could be ready to test this summer, according to
top military officials.
The suits, which have drawn comparisons to the one worn by Marvel
Comics superhero "Iron Man," could be delivered to special operations
forces as early as June.

Prototypes of the suit, which is designed to provide protection from bullets and is equipped with a variety of sensors and cameras, are being assembled and could be ready for the military to test in June, reported Military.com.

The TALOS technology will be rigorously tested, and military personnel hope to have operational systems in the field by August 2018, according to Navy Adm. William McRaven, head of the U.S. Special Operations Command.

The U.S. Army is developing a high-tech suit for soldiers à la "Iron Man."
U.S. Army

"That suit, if done correctly, will yield a revolutionary improvement in
survivability and capability for special operators," McRaven said at
the 25th annual Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict conference
this week in Washington, D.C., according to Military.com.

The suit includes features such as 360-degree cameras with built-in night vision capabilities, sensors that can detect injuries and apply wound-sealing foam, and bulletproof armor.

Eventually, the TALOS systems may include full-body exoskeletons complete with screens that display information about a soldier's surroundings, according to Military.com.

The technology could give American soldiers a "huge comparative advantage over our enemies and give our warriors the protection they need," McRaven said.

WATCH: TALOS - The Army's Future Super Suit.

Government agencies, corporations, universities and national laboratories are collaborating on the TALOS project, and the military may explore ways to distribute prize money as an incentive for others to get involved in the program, McRaven said.

"We are already seeing astounding results of this collaboration," he added.

The TALOS project began as a way to explore how technology can be used to protect special operations officers better in combat zones. "With all the advances in modern technology, I know we can do better," McRaven said. - CBS News.

February 19, 2014 - INDIA - Snuggling in the lap of the massive Brahmaputra, the
gorgeous hotspot of Assam is now facing grave threats of abrasion caused by the
gigantic river itself. The largest river island Majuli is submerging due to
excessive sediment discharge caused by frequent low magnitude seismic
disturbances. It has been reported that the surface area of the island,
originally 1100 square kilometres has shrunk drastically and now areas 352
square kilometres.

The largest river island Majuli is submerging due to excessive sediment discharge.

Majuli, which means, land between two parallel rivers is located in Assam in India and is a region of fluvial geomorphology. Springing from the Brahmaputra basin and turning into a flat-leveled alluvial plain, this isle is bounded by the river Subanisri and her tributaries on the north-west and the Kherkatia Suli, a spill channel of the Brahmaputra in the north-east with the main stream on the south and south-west. These tributaries carry floods laden with fine silt and clay residue and have sheer gradient, shallow braided shifting channels and had course of sandy beds. The formation of islets, around the island locally known as Chaporis, is another significant feature, leading to braiding of the river.

With agriculture being the dominant industry and paddy being the chief crop of the island, Majuli has a profuse and heterogeneous agrarian tradition, with varieties of rice grown, without any use of pesticides or inorganic manure. However, due to heavy rainfall that Assam is subjected to, the area often experiences uncontrolled floods which in turn leads to excessive land erosion. "Majuli was an integral part of the Jorhat district. Due to floods and changed courses of the Brahmaputra, it has been detached from the mainland. Now the present situation is becoming grave due to land erosion particularly in the last two-three decades where huge parts of the island has been eroded by the river", says Dr Kamala Kanta Nath, a retired professor, Department of Agrometeorology, Agricultural University, Jorhat, Assam.

Although fishing, dairying, pottery, handloom and boat-making are other overriding economic activities, handloom, largely non-commercial, is a prime profession among the distaff population in the rural areas. The art of weaving is ornate and perplexing with the use of a variety of colors and textures of cotton and silk, particularly Muga silk.

The villages of the island are inhabited by amiable tribal folk, mostly belonging to the Mising tribe from Arunachal Pradesh. Apart from them, the dwellers are also from the Deori and Sonowal Kacharis tribes. Housing too has transformed from traditional bamboo and mud construction to ones made of concrete. The dialects of this community are Mising, Assamese and Deori. The only means of conveyance to the outside world is through a ferry service that is operational only twice a day.

In this cultural capital and the bassinet of Assamese civilization, satras set up are used to reserve antiques like weapons, utensils, jewellery and other items of ethnic significance. Homologous to the Harappan civilization, Majuli produces pottery made from beaten clay and burnt in driftwood fired kilns. Krishna, the popular God is believed to have played here with his friends. The three-day long raas festival witnessed the participation of nearly every villager, depicting the life of Krishna

The island filled with a rich cultural heritage is now shrinking at a rapid rate and is a major source of concern for the inhabitants. When it rains all our houses are washed away. We live in boats turned into tents; families survive for months. We live on mercy of those who send us food and clothes. We have no place to go. We have no money and no job. We seldom know whether we will be alive the next day, says Surmaiya Chumoa, a resident of the island.

To safeguard the sinking isle, the Union Government of India has sanctioned 250 crores while the water resource department and the Brahmaputra board are struggling to solve the erosion problem of the isle for the last 3 decades to no results. "Our Government is not so well equipped with resources to save Majuli merely with the help of loans. They will require some form of International help and huge amount of funds to save the island. The Indian and Assam Government has already spent a huge sum in making the embankments only to yield negative results. I think that if we go step by step with a long term plan to make arrangements to decrease the rate of erosion and control the floods, then perhaps we will be able to save the island", says the retired professor.

The project, namely The Brahmaputra River Restoration Project is yet to be approved by the Government. However, a nomination has been sent to the UNESCO for the declaration of Majuli to be as a world heritage site. - India Today.

February 19, 2014 - UNITED STATES - The H1N1 virus responsible for the 2009 global pandemic is back.
State health officials from across the country say the resurgence is
resulting in a dramatic rise in flu deaths in young and middle-aged
adults and in children this season.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images -
A sign advertising flu shots hangs in a Walgreens Pharmacy.
Public health officials are encouraging residents to get flu shots as an
aggressive strain of the H1N1 "swine flu" has killed 15 people in the
San Francisco Bay Area.

While the reported death tolls so far are only a fraction of
what they were four years ago, they are significantly higher than last
year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the flu has been killing at epidemic levels since mid-January.

With one month to six weeks to go in the flu season, which typically ends in March or April, the CDC said the number of people visiting doctors and hospitals for flu-like symptoms is declining overall, but some states are continuing to see high levels of flu activity or even increases in activity. Although the flu usually disproportionately affects the very old and the very young, this season 60 percent of those hospitalized for influenza have been age 18 to 64.

“These severe flu outcomes are a reminder that flu can be a very serious disease for anyone, including young, previously healthy adults,” CDC spokesman Jason McDonald said.

H1N1, which is also known as the “swine flu” because it was originally a respiratory illness in pigs, has been popping up in some patients seasonally for the past few years, but this is the first flu season since the 2009 pandemic in which it has been circulating so widely.

The outbreak has been especially severe in California. There have been 243 deaths of residents younger than 65 so far this year. An additional 41 cases were reported but have not been confirmed. In the 2012-13 season, there were 26 deaths by this time, and in the 2011-12 season there were nine deaths. In the 2009-10 season, there were 527 deaths.

Surveillance reports from the health departments in Virginia and Maryland show that the flu is widespread in the region, but the two states and the District of Columbia do not track adult deaths from the flu. The District has seen a surge in flu cases in the past month, with 90 percent being H1N1. Virginia reported that one child died from flu this season, while Maryland and the District had no child deaths.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, some hospitals have been so inundated with patients complaining of flu-like symptoms that triage tents have been set up on their lawns to prevent them from spreading the virus to others in the medical centers. In Sacramento, intensive care units are overflowing with those with breathing issues, water in their lungs, organ failure or other complications from the flu.

Online, residents are swapping stories via social media of people who have died of the flu, and doctors and public officials are seizing on the panic to urge the unvaccinated to get a flu shot immediately. (It takes about two weeks after the shot for the antibodies to develop.)

The death of Nancy Pinnella, a 47-year-old sales manager who worked at Sacramento’s News10, an ABC affiliate, has served as a cautionary tale to many. Pinnella left work Jan. 21 saying that she wasn’t feeling well, was hospitalized the next day and died three days later. Family members told News10 that Pinnella was in great health before she got the flu and did not get a flu shot.

Her story has resulted in an outpouring of sympathy from around the world. California’s first lady, Anne Gust Brown, wife of Gov. Jerry Brown (D), tweeted that she went to CVS and got her first flu shot ever “after reading the heartbreaking story of Nancy Pinnella.”

North Carolina also appears to be looking at a possible record year for flu deaths. The number of deaths stands at 64. Last year, the state had 59 deaths the whole season, and in 2012 it had only nine.

In a study of Duke University Medical Center patients published this month, researchers found that those hospitalized for the flu between Nov. 1 and Jan. 8 were much younger — with an average age of 28.5 years — and more likely to have serious complications than those who had H1N1 in the past. About 40 percent of the patients this year ended up needing intensive care, compared with 20 percent in 2009.

“We don’t know why, but it is worrisome,” said Jelena Catania, an infectious diseases fellow at Duke and a co-author of the study, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Laurie Forlano, deputy state epidemiologist for Virginia, said that although it’s too early to draw any conclusions, there are indications that the population being affected in her state is also skewing toward young adults. She said that H1N1 was included in this year’s flu vaccine, so some of those who are coming down with the flu may not have gotten the vaccine. The vaccine’s efficacy rate is usually in the 50 to 70 percent range.

“It’s never perfect, but for some people, getting the vaccine is a matter of life and death,” she said.

Scientists have been working on a universal flu vaccine, which would provide long-term protection and remove the need to get one every year, but even the most optimistic say such a product is years away.

Meanwhile, the severity of this year’s flu is renewing the controversy over mandatory flu vaccinations.

In Rhode Island, the state has proposed a regulation that would require annual flu vaccines for children up to age 5 and would require those with exemptions to stay out of day care during outbreaks. Opponents, which include the American Civil Liberties Union, say parents should have the right to choose the best medical treatment for their children. A similar debate took place in New York City in December, when the board of health voted in favor of a mandatory vaccine for children younger than 6.

The reemergence of H1N1 in the United States comes as even more virulent strains that are combinations of several genetic strains begin to appear around the world.

In recent months, the World Health Organization has been tracking more than 300 cases, mostly in China, of people infected by a dangerous avian influenza strain, H7N9. A quarter of those infected are estimated to have died, but so far the WHO says there is no evidence of sustained human-to-human transmission.

This month, there was more alarming news: Chinese officials, writing
in the journal Lancet, said they identified yet another brand-new bird
flu, H10N8,
in a 73-year-old woman in Nanchang, a city in the southeastern part of
the country. Researchers hypothesize that the woman, the first known
death from this strain, may have contracted the virus while at a poultry
market. The scientists warned that the virus could become extremely
dangerous if it developed the ability to be transmitted from human to
human.

“The pandemic potential of this novel virus should not be underestimated,” the researchers concluded. - Washington Post.

February 19, 2014 - SPACE - The following constitutes the latest incidents of meteor fireballs seen in the skies over the Earth:

Green Fireball Seen Over Puerto Rico.

A green meteor, similar to the one in this picture, was seen in Puerto Rico. El Nuevo Día

A greenish fireball was seen yesterday night from different towns in all corners of the island.

The meteor was spotted at around 7:05pm from San Juan, Isabela, Ponce,
Arecibo, Rincón y Barceloneta, among other towns, said Eddie Irizarry,
President of the Caribean Astronomy Society (SAC for its initials in Spanish).

"Many people described it as having a green tone to it, and being very
bright," said Irizarry regarding the reports that the SAC had received
about this fireball's sightings.

He added that, judging from the reports, "it must have been a big rock". - El Nuevo Día. [Translated]

A loud explosion was heard and strong tremors were felt today in at least seven towns in the center and West of Santa Fe province, Argentina. "We heard an explosion and windows shook", said witnesses in Cañada de Gómez. The Astronomical Observatory affirmed that it had been "a fireball which disintegrated in the air". There were no reports of wounded victims or damages.

Some say that the earth shook. Others use it as an excuse to skip
school. But whatever the reaction, the fact is that this morning Santa
Fe's central and Western areas were shaken by this alleged explosion.

According to the earliest reports, it was first heard in Cañada de
Gómez, San Martín de las Escobas, Sastre, María Susana, El Trébol,
Montes de Oca y Las Parejas.

What happened? "We heard a big explosion, the windows shook, but the
fact is that we don't know anything and we didn't receive calls
reporting any wounded or anything like that", replied the officers at
the Civil Protection Department in Cañada de Gómez to Rosario3.com.

In Sastre, the response was similar: "Something happened, but we don't
know anything", was the reply from the town hall. Shortly after 11a.m.,
the news became a hot topic on Twitter. Many agreed that it had been "a
meteorite".

Later in the day, the Director of Santa Fe's Astronomical Observatory,
Jorge Coghlan, explained during an interview with radio show "De 12 a
14" that it had been a fireball that disintegrated in the atmosphere,
ending with an explosion, which was what people heard." T added:
"Bolides are bigger than meteors. They tend to be more sporadic and less
numerous."

"This took place at about 60km (37 miles) of altitude. It is a space
rock that gradually slows down in the atmosphere; the altitude is what
enabled it to be heard over such a wide radius, of more than 40 km (24.8
miles).

Emergency Services were activated.

Marcos Escajadillo, Chief of the Civil Protection Unit for this
province, specified for "De 12 a 14" radio interview that the phenomenon
had been recorded after 9.30 a.m.

He also pointed out that, "given the sounds' characteristics, all emergency and communication systems were activated."

Finally, he advised people to wait for a report from the Comisión
Nacional de Actividades Espaciales (National Commision for Space
Activities), even though initially "there [were] no reports of any kind
regarding a possible impact in the ground, and everybody only describes
an overhead explosion."

An asteroid was passing close to Earth

Astronomers informed the public that an asteroid the size of three
football fields was supposed to travel close to our planet. Named 2000
EM26, this body is approximately 270 meters (0.17 miles) in diameter,
and travels at a speed of 12.7 km (7.89 miles) per hour.

"Scientists deny that this asteroid may present any threat to Earth,
because the closest point in its trajectory is of a distance equivalent
to 8.8 times the distance between our planet and the moon,", stated
another report.

From the Astronomical Observatory, the phenomenon recorded in Santa Fe
was considered to "not have any relationship" with Nasa's announcement
of the close passing body.
- Rosario 3. [Translated]

A view of Buenos Aires' Planetarium on March 31, 2012. AFP/File, Alejandro Pagni

Scientists said Tuesday that a meteor crashing to earth
could explain reports of an explosion in the Argentine countryside some
350 kilometers (250 miles) northwest of Buenos Aires.

"It's possible it was a meteor," said Andrea Clerici of the Buenos Aires Planetarium, speaking to local television.

Authorities have not yet found any meteor fragments, but "it is possible
that the orb disintegrated in the air," astronomer Jorge Coghlan of the
Santa Fe Astronomical Observatory told local radio.

Residents in the area who reported hearing a loud explosion Tuesday said that the ground and also buildings shook. - AFP.

Meteor Spotted Over Epping, England.

Daniel Bagan-Jones was driving in High Street, Epping, when the object caught his eye. Guardian Series, UK

A stargazer has described spotting "huge green fireball" in the sky over Epping as a meteor flew close to the earth.

Daniel Bagan-Jones, 45, was travelling in a car with his wife in High
Street, Epping, at 6:30pm on Saturday when the object caught his eye.

He said: "It was like a bright green slash, like a fireball.

"My immediate thought was that it was a firework only it was coming down
instead of going up before burning out completely - that's when we
realised it was a meteor.

"Seeing one on our way to Tesco was unexpected - anyone going down the
M11 would have seen it - my wife thought it was the end of the world.

"I'm interested in astronomy so I checked online and noticed that others had seen the same."

It transpired that there had also been various sightings across the
country, including Norfolk, Plymouth, Cheshire, Bristol and Cardiff.

The fireball was classified as "sporadic" as it didn't belong to any
known meteor shower. The meteor traveled at a speed of 16.3 km per
second and started to burn up in the atmosphere at an altitude of
86.3km. The full event lasted 4.4 seconds and the meteor covered
distance of 47.7km within the earth's atmosphere.
- Guardian Series.

Meteorite Blasts Hole In Roof Of Oslo House In Norway.

Photo: Geir Barstein

Driven by irritation due to a possible water leak, 6 February Steinar
Engh (69) took a ladder to the roof. What he discovered was extremely
rare and unexpected: A meteorite had smashed a hole in the villa on
Korsvolltoppen outside Oslo.

Experts reviews speak of a sensation. They only know of three previous
cases where meteorites have hit an inhabited house in this country.

Photo: Geir Barstein

- I noticed that large icicles on the ceiling of the terrace had formed,
and thought that it was water leaking down from the upstairs
neighbour's porch on the second floor. I climbed up the ladder and found
a hole in the floor. Next to it was a small stone, says Engh.

Engh threw the stone out on the lawn. 69-year-old first assumed it was
some rubble from blasting from a quarry had caused the damage, and
called for a plumber. A hole was punched through a metal plate and
woodwork that make up the porch floor, but the foundation of the roof of
the terrace below was still intact.

Crushed

He ran a hand down the hole.

- And then I found the large stone. It was dry and well into the roof,
and it was just luck that I discovered it. If not it would have been
built into the house forever, laughed Engh.

The damage was repaired the same day, but Engh said he suspected that
the stone with the black surface layer could be a meteorite. He
contacted a neighbor who works at the Natural History Museum in Oslo,
which was later confirmed that it was a space rock.

Photo: Geir Barstein

- It was an honor to be able to hold a meteorite, which hasn't even
touched the ground. The stone has been on a 4.65 billion-year journey,
and then it hit my house, Engh says to Dagbladet.

The stone, probably moved at a speed of up to 300 km / h, split in the
collision: one large piece, one small and numerous small fragments.
Sensational

Together they weigh 2.8 kg, representing the fourth largest single
meteorite found in Norway, according to Morten Billet of Norwegian
meteor network, one of the nation's foremost experts in the field.

He has investigated the spot of impact as well as stone and is one hundred percent sure that it concerns a meteorite.

Photo: Geir Barstein

- It is very, very typical. You see it very well on the black surface
layer, the so-called burning membrane. Inside you will find small "corn"
called chondrules. It was the primordial matter that floated around
space when the solar system was formed, says Billet.

- This is really sensational. We know of only three previous occasions where meteorites have hit inhabited house, he said.

But when the rock crashed into the house is an open question. According
to Billet it likely concerns an Oslo meteorite, from a space rock rain
over the capital sometime in early March 2012.

Time Mystery

The controversial Grefsen meteorites, which are owned by Knut Jørgen
Roed Odegaard and his wife Anne Mette Sannes, weighing a total of 4.6 kg
and is the largest of its kind in Norway in 100 years.

The fragment was found among other Rodeløkka, where it had gone through the roof on an allotment.

Photo: Geir Barstein

The controversial pieces that were found on Grefsen and owned by Knut
Jørgen Roed Odegaard and his wife Anne Mette Sannes, weighing a total of
4.6 kg, but is not officially analyzed and verified in the
international meteorite register.

Enghs house is located right in the area where collectors anticipated
that several pieces fell down, along the estimated route that followed
the space rock as it broke through the atmosphere.

- If you look at the stone, it is almost identical to the second Oslo
meteorites. Chances are it is from another meteorite fall is extremely
small. It would be like winning the lottery three times in a row, says
Image.

Engh is unsure when the hole in the porch may have occurred.

- We do not know. I'm never on the porch, and my tenant uses it very
rarerely, says Engh, who has wondered if it might stem from a blow his
wife and daughter heard last October.

Analyzed

Photo: Geir Barstein

He has provided samples to the Natural History Museum (NHM), University
of Oslo so that they can perform analysis. In a few weeks it will be
clear whether it is a new Oslo meteorite, or whether it stems from an
entirely different and unprecedented case.

Geologist and Associate Professor Rune Selbekk at NHM agree that it most likely is an Oslo meteorite.

- They are very, very similar in look. Now we take a so-called
thin-section to check the internal structure, and then we will see if
it's a different case. The probability is small, but it's there, says
Selbekk Dagbladet.

Meteorites can be very valuable if they are of a rare type. The variant
Engh found called chondrites and is common, but it is big and has hit a
house - which is very unusual, even worldwide - means that the value can
reach several tens of thousands of dollars.

Engh, however, is not in a hurry to get rid of it.

- In the first place I'll take good care of it. It should be recorded
and investigated at the university, and I have no immediate plans to
sell it or do something else. It shall be safe and dry, he said.
- Dagbladet. [Translated]

Meteorite Lands In Danish Schoolyard.

Mystery continues to surround the landing of a strange rock in the grounds of Rygaards school in Hellerup late last month.

It was a case of hold that front page as fully 50 Year 4 children from
the international department of Rygaards School descended upon the
offices of The Copenhagen Post on the morning of Friday January 31.

But they were too late, as we had already gone to print. If only, in the immortal words of Aqua, we could turn back time.

Armed with their pens, notepads and fearsome interview techniques, the
intrepid reporters of the future first lay siege to managing editor Ben
Hamilton (that would be me) with an onslaught of questions. Whoa, we
thought you were the ones with the story!

The children exerted Ben Hamilton to extreme pressure to deliver on deadline

And then it was down to business. A suspect rock, possibly a meteorite,
had landed in their school's grounds. They had the eye-witness accounts,
the details and the expert opinions - all this humble scribe needed to
do was thread it all into a news story and nail it onto that front page.
No pressure at all.

And just like that, as sudden as the impact of that
rock itself, it was over. Veni, vidi, vici, they left 90 minutes later
with a front page in the bag. If only all of our cover stories could be
that cost and time-effective. - Copenhagen Post.

February 19, 2014 - NORTH CAROLINA, UNITED STATES - North Carolina officials said
Tuesday that groundwater containing unsafe levels of arsenic apparently
leaching from a Duke Energy coal ash dump is still pouring into the Dan
River, which is already contaminated from a massive Feb. 2 spill.

Amy Adams, North Carolina campaign coordinator with Appalachian Voices,
shows her hand covered with wet coal ash from the Dan River swirling in
the background as state and federal environmental officials continued
their investigations of a spill of coal ash into the river in Danville,
Va., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome

The state Department of Environment and Natural Resources ordered Duke to stop the flow of contaminated water coming out a pipe that runs under a huge coal ash dump at its Eden power plant. A nearby pipe at the same dump collapsed without warning two weeks ago, coating the bottom of the Dan River with toxic ash as far as 70 miles downstream.

State regulators expressed concern five days ago that the second pipe could fail, triggering a new spill. The water coming out of that pipe contains poisonous arsenic at 14 times the level considered safe for human contact, according to test results released by the state on Tuesday.

"We are ordering Duke Energy to eliminate this unauthorized discharge immediately," said Tom Reeder, director of the N.C. Division of Water Resources.

Video taken last week by a robot sent inside the 36-inch-wide concrete pipe showed wide gaps between seams through which groundwater is gushing in, likely from the toxic dump above.

Tests on water from the pipe before it goes under the dump showed none of the dangerous contamination detected at the other end. The concrete inside the pipe is heavily stained around the numerous leaks, suggesting the contamination is likely not new.

A state inspector received the video recorded by Duke during a Feb. 11 visit to the site, but did not review it until Thursday. On Friday night, the state agency went public with concerns about the pipe's structural integrity.

"After reviewing the videotape, we determined that no immediate action was necessary," it said.

Signs of coal ash swirl in the water in the Dan River in Danville, Va.
Duke Energy estimates that up to 82,000 tons of coal ash has been
released from a break in a 48-inch storm water pipe at the Dan River
Power Plant in Eden N.C., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Gerry
Broome)

Jenny Edwards, program manager for Rockingham County with the Dan River
Basin Association, scoops coal ash from the banks of the river as state
and federal environmental officials continued their investigations of a
spill in Eden, N.C. Duke Energy estimates that up to 82,000 tons of ash
has been released from a break in a 48-inch storm water pipe at the Dan
River Power Plant, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Coal ash lines the banks of the Dan River as state and federal
environmental officials continued their investigations of a spill of
coal ash into the river in Eden, N.C., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. (AP
Photo/Gerry Broome)

A pipe from the Dan River Power Plant where coal ash spilled is seen
along the Dan River as state and federal environmental officials
continued their investigations in Eden, N.C., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014.
(AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Brian Williams, not shown, program manager for the Dan River Basin
Association, scoops up coal ash on his canoe paddle from the bank of the
Dan River as state and federal environmental officials continued their
investigations of a spill of coal ash in Eden, N.C., Wednesday, Feb. 5,
2014. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Demonstrators chant and hold signs behind a display of coal ash and the
chemicals in it during a protest near Duke Energy's headquarters in
Charlotte, N.C., Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014 over Duke Energy's coal plants.
(AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Coal ash swirls on the surface of the Dan River as state and federal
environmental officials continued their investigations of a spill of
coal ash into the river in Danville, Va., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. (AP
Photo/Gerry Broome)

A fresh-water muscle rests along the banks of the Dan River as state and
federal environmental officials continued their investigations of a
spill of coal ash in Eden, N.C., Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. (AP
Photo/Gerry Broome)

In the wake of the initial spill,
public health officials issued advisories telling people to avoid
contact with the river water and not eat the fish.

Authorities said public drinking water in Danville, Va., and other communities downstream of the Duke plant remain safe. Heavy metals detected in the river at levels exceeding state and federal safety standards — including arsenic, lead and selenium — are being successfully filtered out of water drawn from the river at municipal treatment plants, they said.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday a massive pile of coal ash about 75 feet long and as much as 5 feet deep has been detected in the river by the site of the Feb. 2 spill. Deposits varying from 5 inches deep to less than 1 inch coated the river bottom across the state line into Virginia and to Kerr Lake, a major reservoir.

Federal authorities expressed concern for what long-term effect the contaminants will have on fish, mussels and other aquatic life.

"The deposits vary with the river characteristics, but the short- and long-term physical and chemical impacts from the ash will need to be investigated more thoroughly, especially with regard to mussels and fish associated with the stream bottom and wildlife that feed on benthic invertebrates," said Tom Augspurger, a contaminants specialist at the federal wildlife agency.

Benthic invertebrates are small animals that live in the sediments of rivers and lakes, such as clams, worms and crustaceans.

The Dan River system in North Carolina and Virginia is home to two federally listed endangered species, the Roanoke logperch fish and the James spinymussel. The river also has another freshwater mussel, the green floater, which is currently being evaluated for protection under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

Officials said the coal ash is burying aquatic animals and their food. The ash, created when coal is burned to generate electricity, could also clog gill tissues in fish and mussels. The agency said public reports of dead aquatic turtles at two state parks in Virginia had not yet been verified by federal biologists.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has warned that increased flow in the river resulting from last week's snowfall and rain threatens to wash the toxic ash even further downstream. The Dan flows back across into North Carolina before emptying into the Albemarle Sound.

Meanwhile, Duke Energy announced Tuesday that its fourth-quarter profits jumped 58 percent after officials in North Carolina and other states approved hikes in the rates customers pay for electricity. The company had revenues of $24.6 billion for 2013.

George Everett, Duke's director of environmental and legislative affairs, told state legislators this week that the company is sorry for the spill and will be accountable.

Any costs incurred because of the cleanup will likely be passed on to ratepayers, not shareholders, he said.

"We have paid absolutely no attention to costs, to this point," Everett said, responding to a lawmaker's question about who will pay. "We're focused on stopping the discharge and initiating the remediation of the river. But when costs do come into play, when we've had a chance to determine what those costs are, it's usually our customers who pay our costs of operation."

It would be up to the N.C. Utilities Commission to approve any new rate hikes for Duke. Members of that board are appointed by Gov. Pat McCrory, who worked at Duke for 28 years. -Yahoo.

February 19, 2014 - BRAZIL - Did you know that the drought in Brazil is so bad that some
neighborhoods are only being allowed to get water once every three
days? At this point, 142 Brazilian cities are rationing water and there
does not appear to be much hope that this crippling drought is going to
end any time soon. Unfortunately, most Americans seem to be absolutely
clueless about all of this.

In response to my recent article
about how the unprecedented drought that is plaguing California right
now could affect our food supply, one individual left a comment stating
“if Califirnia can’t supply South America will. We got NAFTA.” Apart
from the fact that this person could not even spell “California”
correctly, we also see a complete ignorance of what is going on in the
rest of the planet. The truth is that the largest country in South
America (Brazil) is also experiencing an absolutely devastating drought
at the moment. They are going to have a very hard time just taking
care of their own people for the foreseeable future.

And this horrendous drought in Brazil could potentially have a huge impact on the total global food supply.

As a recent RT article detailed, Brazil is the leading exporter in the world in a number of very important food categories…

Over 140 Brazilian cities have been pushed to ration water
during the worst drought on record, according to a survey conducted by
the country’s leading newspaper. Some neighborhoods only receive water once every three days.

Water is being rationed to nearly 6 million people living in a total of 142 cities across 11 states in Brazil, the world’s leading exporter of soybeans, coffee, orange juice, sugar and beef.
Water supply companies told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that the
country’s reservoirs, rivers and streams are the driest they have been
in 20 years. A record heat wave could raise energy prices and damage
crops.

Some neighborhoods in the city of Itu in
Sao Paulo state (which accounts for one-quarter of Brazil’s population
and one-third of its GDP), only receive water once every three days, for a total of 13 hours.

Are you starting to see what I mean?

This is serious.

The drought in North America also continues to get even worse. According to an expert interviewed by National Geographic, this drought in the state of California “could last for 200 years or more”…

B. Lynn Ingram,
a paleoclimatologist at the University of California at Berkeley,
thinks that California needs to brace itself for a megadrought—one that
could last for 200 years or more.

As
a paleoclimatologist, Ingram takes the long view, examining tree rings
and microorganisms in ocean sediment to identify temperatures and dry
periods of the past millennium. Her work suggests that droughts are
nothing new to California.

A drought of even 10 years would absolutely cripple this
nation. Already, the size of the total U.S. cattle herd is the
smallest that it has been in 63 years and California farmers are going to let half a million acres
sit idle this year because of the extremely dry conditions. If this
drought persists for several more years we will have an unprecedented
crisis on our hands.

Unfortunately, there are signs that this current
drought in California may be part of a larger trend. I had never heard
of “the Pacific Decadal Oscillation” before this week, but apparently
it is a phenomenon that can cause droughts that last "for decades"…

Ingram
and other paleoclimatologists have correlated several historic
megadroughts with a shift in the surface temperature of the Pacific
Ocean that occurs every 20 to 30 years—something called the Pacific
Decadal Oscillation (PDO). The PDO is similar to an El Nino event
except it lasts for decades—as its name implies—whereas an El Nino
event lasts 6 to 18 months. Cool phases of the PDO result in less
precipitation because cooler sea temperatures bump the jet stream north,
which in turn pushes off storms that would otherwise provide rain and
snow to California. Ingram says entire lakes dried up in California
following a cool phase of the PDO several thousand years ago.

And
of course it isn’t just the western half of the country that is
struggling with water supply problems. In the Southeast, water has
been a major political issue for quite some time…

The
drought-parched states of Georgia, Alabama and Florida are back at it —
fighting for a slice of water rights in a decades-long water war
that’s left all three thirsty for more.
The 24-year dispute is emblematic of an increasingly common economic
problem facing cities and states across the country – the demand for
water quickly outpacing the supply as spikes in population soak up
resources.

Most of us that live in the United States are accustomed to having
seemingly inexhaustible supplies of fresh water. We use more fresh
water per capita than anyone else on the planet, and most of us never
even think twice about it.

Unfortunately, things are changing. We are on the precipice of a great water crisis, and many Americans are going to be in for a very rude awakening.

And the frightening thing is that the U.S. is actually in much better shape than most of the rest of the world is when it comes to supplies of fresh water. In some areas of the globe, a “water crisis” is already a daily reality.

We have heard that someday water is going to become the “new oil”, and
we are starting to get to that point. Life is simply not possible
without water, and as global supplies of clean, fresh water dwindle it
is inevitable that it is going to cause global tensions to rise. - Activist Post.

Scenes from the twin blasts in the Beirut neighborhood of Bir Hasan Wednesday,Feb. 19, 2014.
(The Daily Star/Maaen Mazloum)

The Al-Qaeda-linked Abdullah Azzam Brigades claimed responsibility for the deadly explosions, describing the attacks as a "raid" against the center in retaliation to Hezbollah and Tehran's role in the Syrian war.

The same group also claimed the Nov. 19 twin suicide attack outside the Iranian Embassy that killed dozens, including an Iranian diplomat.

The blasts, which occurred at 9:25 a.m. during rush hour, are the second attack in less than four months targeting Iranian interests in Bir Hasan. The commercial and residential neighborhood is home to the Iranian and Kuwaiti embassies and several television stations.

Ambulances and Civil Defense trucks rushed to the scene of the explosion which was powerful enough to be felt several kilometers away.

The twin attack killed eight people, including a soldier and the two suicide bombers, the source told The Daily Star, adding that several wounded were in critical condition.

Tawhid party, headed by Wiam Wahhab, said one of the victims of the blasts was a member of the group identified as 56-year-old Hamzi Sobh.

Al-Manar Television reported that the soldier grew suspicious of one of the bombers inside the vehicle and stopped him. The bomber then blew up the car.

The Lebanese Army urged citizens whose relatives went missing in the attack to head to Al-Rasoul Al-Azam Hospital to undergo DNA tests in order to identify human remains found on the site.

The military said the "simultaneous attacks" were caused by two vehicles that exploded seconds apart: a Mercedes exploded outside the Iranian Cultural Center while a BMW blew up near the European exhibition center.

A wounded woman is carried from the site of an explosion that targeted the Beirut neighborhood of Bir Hasan Wednesday,Feb. 19, 2014. (The Daily Star/Mahmoud Kheir)

“The Military Police unit as well as a number of experts began investigating the site of the explosion and human remains found near the attack site,” the Army said in a statement.

In a separate statement, the Army reported that the Mercedes had a fake license plate and contained 75 kilograms of explosives and shells distributed in the car.

The second vehicle, BMW X5, contained 90 kilograms of shells placed in the four-wheel vehicle, which was stolen from Beirut’s southern suburbs on the Airport road.

The Army added that the BMW was originally registered under the name of Mohammad Ali Issa and was later sold to Mustafa Ismail.

A number of buildings and vehicles were damaged and human remains were seen scattered at the site of the attack.

“I was walking near the Kuwaiti Embassy and I heard what sounded and felt like an earthquake,” a passerby told The Daily Star.

“I immediately rushed to check on my sister who works nearby,” the distraught man said.

A family living in one of the damaged buildings said they woke up to the sound of the explosions.

“My children were terrified. I went down stairs to see what happened,” another Bir Hasan resident said.

The Islamic Orphanage, located meters away from the Iranian center, said 11 children and one supervisor were slightly wounded.

The children were on the playground when the explosion occurred, a statement from the institution said, adding that the building, which houses some 260 orphans, was severely damaged.

“We were playing pull-the-rope when the explosion happened,” said one of the children.

“May God punish them and not allow them to go to Heaven,” another shouted. “Please God!”

Newly appointed Interior Minister Nuhad Machnouk expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and said Lebanese authorities should crack down on stolen vehicles in Lebanon.

“There are Lebanese passageways sending stolen vehicles to Syria where they are being rigged with explosives,” Machnouk told reporters at the site.

“We should crack down in areas like the Bekaa and others where thieves live and where stolen vehicles are taken,” he added.

Machnouk also said that some Lebanese were facilitating the work of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades.

The Iranian Embassy in Beirut said there were no serious injuries among its staff at the cultural center.

Lebanon has been rocked by a series of bombings mostly targeting predominantly-Shiite neighborhoods in the capital’s suburbs and east Lebanon.

Radical groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda have claimed responsibility for the explosions, saying the attacks were in retaliation to Hezbollah’s military involvement in Syria.

Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah stood defiant Sunday, saying his group would remain fighting "takfiri forces" in Syria and would only withdraw if Arab countries stop meddling in the war-torn country.

Wednesday’s attacks come days after Prime Minister Tammam Salam announced the formation of his “National Interest” Cabinet, bringing together the Hezbollah-led March 8 and the Future Movement-led March 14 coalitions. - The Daily Star.

February 19, 2014 - EARTH - The following constitutes the latest incidents of mass animal, bird and fish die-offs across the Earth:

Hundreds Of Dead Fish Wash Ashore On Beaches In Mallorca, Spain.

Hundreds of dead fish have appeared in Mallorca on the shores of Son Baulo.

Investigations have been started by the local council and environmental employees to find out where the fish may have come from and why.

Passers-by were surprised to see dozens of metres of shoreline covered in dead fish, most of which were only three or four centimetres long, although there were a few larger sea bass, weighing in at around two or three kilos.

There have been at least three similar incidents in the area in the past; one investigation found that they had died through lack of oxygen, another tracked the problem down to a nearby hotel with toxic waste on the premises.

In the recent case, no other animals appeared to suffer; so toxic waste is less likely to be the cause.

There is a patch of still water just before the river mouth where, at certain times of the year the levels drop and the water becomes stagnant. Neighbours have suggested that there may be less danger to the fish if the water could run year round into the sea to allow more oxygen to circulate in the water. - Euro Weekly News.

Hundreds Of Sheep And Goats Killed Due To Outbreak Of Disease In Ningxia, China.

February 19, 2014 - ENGLAND - A building has partially collapse in Ripon close to where a sinkhole has opened up.

A 30ft-deep sinkhole opened up High Wycombe. Photo: Steve Parsons/PA Wire

The house over a sinkhole in Ripon. Credit: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Wire

North Yorkshire Police say they were alerted to reports that a house
was in danger of collapse on Magdelen’s Road at 5.40 pm on Monday (17
February).

"The incident is in the early stages but it is believed that the property has been affected by a sinkhole."

– North Yorkshire Police

Nearby homes have been evacuated and a cordon has been put in place to protect members of the public.
At this stage no injuries have been reported

A cordon is in place around a suspected sinkhole in Ripon Photo: ITV Tyne Tees

Emergency services are on the scene with specialist engineers Credit: ITV Tyne Tees

The sinkhole is close to Magdelen's Road in Ripon Credit: ITV Tyne Tees

In a statement North Yorkshire Police said: "Officers are carrying
out house to house checks in the area to warn people close to the
affected properties.

"The incident is in the early stages but it is believed that the property has been affected by a sinkhole."
Utility services’ engineers and structural engineers have been called in to asses the incident.

Sinkholes like those that have recently opened in Ripon, High Wycombe
and the Peak District will become more frequent due to the effects of
climate change, a leading academic has said.

Natural sinkholes are caused as softer soluble rock and sand is washed away by water.

A sinkhole also opened up in the central reservation of the M2 in Kent. Credit: Highways Agency

In some areas vertical gaps in the limestone bedrock have become
filled with sand and soil over thousands of years., when this is removed
by water sinkholes open up.

The recent increase in
the number of sinkholes is due to the severely wet winter which has
raised the water table, meaning more is washed away causing instability.

The wetter winters predicted by climate change will see changes in the
water table that could cause more sinkholes, according to Dr Nigel
Woodcock from the Department of Earth Sciences at Cambridge University.

WATCH: British Geological Survey explanation of how these sinkholes happen:

Sinkholes can also be caused by the erosion of layers of salt in the
ground, which is what Dr Woodcock believes may have caused the Ripon
sinkhole.

As well as becoming more commonplace in the future, in the shorter
term Dr Vanessa Banks from the British Geological Survey (BGS) says we
should expect more sinkholes as the ground remains saturated.

The ground is saturated at the moment, in certain parts of the
country, and where it's saturated, it will remain saturated for some
weeks, if not months.
And gradually the situation will improve, but in the short term I suspect there will be more of these incidents being reported.

– Dr Vanessa Banks, British Geological Survey

Dr Woodcock has called for greater regulation of developers to help stop homes being built on sinkholes.

In lots of cases developers should be required, more than they currently are, to take into account the local geography.
We know where the limestone areas are, detecting sinkholes is costly but developers should be required to do it.

Where areas of instability are identified before building steps can
be taken to patch the ground and strengthen it to stop possible
sinkholes opening up.

Areas of limestone that are likely to see sinkholes. Credit: British Geological Survey

Most natural sinkholes, those caused by erosion and not old mine
shafts or wells, do not usually tend to spread sideways after the
initial fall.

However, as mines fall in whole galleries can become weakened and the holes can spread.

Once a sinkhole has opened it can be filled in again, however this
can be an expensive process. This is usually done by simply filling the
hole in with concrete, although it could take as many as 50 concrete
trucks to carry enough to fill an average hole completely. - ITV.